Fashion lovers who adore color and latest trends, I present you with a short review of the fashion experts’ opinions on the Color of the Year — Living Coral. This year’s color is fun, exciting, and full of life. I love to combine various colors in my outfits and, in general, prefer brighter tones to pastels. When I put on something colorful, my mood brightens up, and I feel ready to take on the world. I hope this post will inspire you to “take on” color and have fun with it.
Living Coral is a beautiful orange color with pink undertones — think coral reefs. These beautiful treasures of nature tacked away under feet of ocean water are mesmerizing. Coral reefs are complex ecosystems that are homes to a variety of species including fish, clams, sponges, turtles and many others. They are the fragile mini-universes to be treasured and admired.
Even though coral reefs are hidden away from human’s direct touch, we still manage to kill or damage many of them. Our disregard for the ocean is appalling: overfishing, water pollution, and climate change — is caused by human’s ignorance and lack of respect for our precious planet.
Let’s step back for a minute to learn who selects the color of the year and how they do it.
Pantone Color Institute has been selecting the color of the year for 20 years. The institute sorts through hundreds of data-points to identify the next color, not only in fashion, but also in home decor, design, arts, music, and films. After the Color Institute is done crunching the numbers, it delivers its recommendations and upcoming fashion trends. Announcing the Pantone Color of the Year 2019.
As I was reading about Living Coral and ways to style it, I stumbled upon a useful and educational article: Living Coral Is the Pantone Color of the Year — Here’s How to Wear It by Steff Yotka, Vogue.
The author starts the article with a little bit of history about the color. During the 1950ies, a few European fashion houses used coral color in their runway shows. Specifically, the color appeared in French collections by Cristóbal Balenciaga and Christian Dior. Dior’s velvet swing coat with the matching hat was a hit of the runway show.
During the 1960ies, the coral color briefly appeared on runways and quickly faded out. Then in 1980ies, during the DayGlo days, the bright orange color became a popular craze. The bright neon colors changed not only fashion but also design, arts, and advertisement. Colors were more vivid due to innovative technology that gave us the fluorescent glow of neon colors. How DayGlo Went From Utility Pigment to Design World Darling, EyeonDesign.aiga.org.
“Fluorescent color is seen 75 percent sooner than conventional color! Fluorescent color is three times brighter than regular color! Your eyes go back to fluorescent color for a second look 59 percent of the time!” How DayGlo Went From Utility Pigment to Design World Darling.
After the brief appearance in 1980ies, we would not see orange till the 2010’s passion for the color blocking. Bright and brave combinations of neon colors flooded the runways and streets.
Fast-forward to 2019 Spring/Summer shows, and we meet Living Coral on the runways of Prada, Altuzarra, Brandon Maxwell, and Sacai. Prada’s coral colors are soft, delicate pastel shades. There is calming and nurturing sensation as we see these looks come down the runway. Altuzarra’s collection featured brighter and bolder colors. There was more life and excitement in runways looks — spring and summer are definitely here now!
My favorite one was Brandon Maxwell’s collection — bright, fun, and bold. If I could, I would wear many of the pieces including a short orange dress or bright separates. The runway just came to life with all the colors jumping out yet working together to create energy and beauty.
The second article that caught my eyes was Pantone’s Color Of The Year 2019 Has An Important Meaning Behind It by Georgia Murray & Anna Jay, Refinery29.com. Authors reviewed Pantone’s color choice by discussing coral reefs and the color’s features while referring to the interview with Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute.
The article emphasizes the natural beauty of Living Coral color that creates warmth and connects people. Coral is inviting and nourishing; we cannot resist the urge to touch, feel and wear this joyful color. Authors mention the colors of a sunset that are filled with shades of Living Coral. Humans all over the world are intrigued and often stilled while watching a sunset. It is an intimate, serene and enchanting moment when one gazes at the fading sunlight enjoying the beauty of colors and ever-changing shades of coral, pink, orange, and red.
“It expresses warmth, that kind of harmony, human interaction and social connection that we’re looking for. I think that’s something so inherent in the human mind. It pulls you in, gathers you in, in such a warm and inviting way that it opens up an avenue to positive thoughts, not negative. That, we felt, was a really vital part of expressing the Color of the Year with Living Coral.” Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute.
So what did we learn about Living Coral?
- Living Coral is vibrant: The bright, life-loving coral color will bring to life any outfit. Living Coral will propel you into the summer with joy and happiness.
- Living Coral is exquisite: Softer pinker shades of coral will bring out the delicate feminine notes in any outfit. You will turn heads no matter where you go.
- Living Coral is effortless: Coral is easy to style. It pairs with many colors including pink, blue, turquoise, black, silver, and gold.
Runway looks might seem impossible to recreate but do not worry. The coral color is not as intimidating as you think. Different shades of coral pair well with many other colors like turquoise, blue, pink, neutrals, and black. I gathered a few examples below. I hope they will inspire and motivate you to give Living Coral a try.
I hope you enjoyed this post!
Originally published at www.updateyourstyle.com
